A Kuala Lumpur-based archaeologist stated that he has discovered the remains of a sunken wooden Dutch merchant vessel. Along with his team, he found the remains about three nautical miles off Pulau Besar, AsiaOne News reports.
Malacca Museum Authority’s general manager, Datuk Khamis Abas said the wooden vessel had been detected during an underwater survey several years ago but he added: “Due to the strong undercurrent, the expedition team could only record the sighting without doing any research”.
The team found the vessel buried about 1m under the seabed, and 27m beneath the ocean’s surface off the Straits of Malacca in May.
There it was hidden from the underwater relic hunters.
“The discovery is so monumental because much of the hull has remained intact and the vessel appears to be well preserved due to the sand” , the archeologist said.
The vessel is believed to contain about RM500 million (S$199 million) worth of cultural relics.
The archeologist and his team have reported the finding to the Heritage Department.
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Subsea World News Staff , July 11, 2012